"Sometimes, sheltered by surrounding trees we would come upon luxurious groves of the nikau palm. It seemed a shame to destroy such stately loveliness.
The solemn stillness in these sequestered places, the subdued light filtering through the arched fronds of the nikaus, the many columns of the pillared like trunks reminded me of some stately cathedral or temple fo the gods.
Such groves are to be found only in the sheltered places of the bush, the wind scarred veterans sometimes found in cleared places are lone survivors, bravely striving against the wear and tear of the unkind elements.
To behold these delicate palms in all their pristine loveliness, seek them in some sheltered nook, the holy of holies as it were, of the bush." - Joshua Caleb Robinson [c1863]
He was an ancestor of mine and every time I paint a nikau I think of this quote and hope that the painting will "replace" one of the many thousands that were destroyed by the early settlers while clearing the land.
Tutukaka
Oil on linen
